Daily Excerpt: A Theology for the Rest of Us (Yavelberg) - introductory words
Excerpt from A Theology for the Rest of Us -
introductory words
These are trying times, as
they say. I am older now—way past the 40 years of age that was the boundary for
baby boomers for any kind of trust. I personally remember the race riots of the
60’s, the demonstrations against the Viet Nam War and the cynicism of political
authority born of Watergate. I have studied enough history to be more than a
little familiar with the Civil War, the Great Depression, and when the United
States seriously considered the proposition that “What this country needs is a
dictator!” Today’s challenges seem to pale in comparison. Nevertheless, the big
difference is that today’s challenges are today’s challenges. The past is
important and can have lessons that can be helpful, but those lessons must be
understood and applied today for them to be any good.
Maybe the most
frustrating problem facing so many today is the feeling of helplessness that
comes from feeling overwhelmed. Access to information, through the Internet and
other media, was supposed to be a panacea, a way to access information so that
we can all make intelligent choices for ourselves. As it happens however, there
has been so much information, tsunamis of data from all kinds of experts on
just about any topic imaginable, that most of us, the rest of us, are drowning
and panicked.
It is in this context that
I offer this little book, A Theology for the Rest of Us. “Theology” is a
broad, intimidating term for a host of questions having to do with the meaning
and source of life and all existence. Like any other topic, there are many
experts with all kinds of degrees and weighty theses and analyses. Their
language is often esoteric—complicated, they usually say, because the topic is
complicated and the language must be precise. I suspect, however, that some of
that complicated language is less about precision and more about preserving
their authority and power. “I know these big words and you don’t, so you need
to listen to me because I’m smarter than you.”
Let me say from the outset
that I am not smarter than you. I don’t have a lot of university degrees or
acronyms after my name. I also don’t have a long white beard or colorful robes
or an exotic accent. I’m someone who has read a lot, travelled a little and,
maybe most important of all, asked a lot of questions. I assure you: I have had
no grand epiphany, no extraordinary experience where the heavens have opened
and revealed the presence of The Almighty Who has resolved all my doubts and
insecurities. I have simply looked at the world around me and its history and
tried to make some sense of it all. I do not have all the answers, but I have
come to enough of a direction to feel like I have a better idea as to where I
am going and that keeps me from feeling lost, at least most of the time.
While this book is mine and
makes sense to me, I doubt there is anything truly new here. Many of these
ideas are quite old, in fact. I just may be presenting them in a more
understandable way. This is not a peremptory defense for any inadvertent
plagiarism. I taught middle school for many years and, if I had any strengths,
it had to do with explaining ideas to adolescents with examples they could
follow. I never felt like I was talking down to them
Rather, I felt like we were
on a journey together trying to make sense of all the ways people have thought
and behaved in the past. Sometimes we made more sense than others, but it was
always intriguing and fun.
Note that this process
involved “all the ways.” Over the millennia of human history, there have been
countless theologies, philosophies, metaphysics—with leaders and followers just
as diverse. My guess is that people selected faiths or lack thereof as much as
reflections of their personalities as because of any intrinsic logical
persuasiveness. As a result, I have allowed myself the freedom to pick and
choose what makes sense to me and what does not. While every system of thought
may have something of value, not every system of thought has everything of
value for everyone.
I do not say that lightly,
by the way, and you should not underestimate the risks of such an approach. People
are social animals by nature and religions (and, for these purposes, I include
atheism as a religion in the sense that it is a system of faith) are social
communities where there is considerable pressure to conform. That is not a
blanket criticism or rejection of all religions. Peer pressure is not always a
bad thing and finding a group of like-minded people can help encourage us to
persist when the inevitable doubts and frustrations of life appear. How to
balance one’s unique ideas with the needs of a group for cohesion is no easy
task. It is probably true that everyone has their crises of faith, but not
everyone is prepared to acknowledge and address those crises openly and
consciously. Such people are not going to take too kindly to those with
questions they themselves have exerted great psychic energy to repress. Therefore,
while just about everyone espouses the value of “independent, critical thinking,”
just about everyone expects that the results of that independent, critical
thinking will validate their own. When those results do not coincide, it is
seldom a pretty picture. To the degree you value these social attachments, be
warned that such theological explorations may leave you alone on your journey.
If you have any doubts
along those lines, consider the fates of those religious personalities who
dared to challenge their contemporary religions. In the Biblical Book of Genesis,
for example, Abraham begins Judaism—and, with it, Western monotheism— by
abandoning his homeland, Ur, and everything he associated with civilization as
he follows God’s command to “Leave your native country, your relatives, and
your father’s family to a land that I will show you” (Gen. 12). Siddhartha, the
Buddha-to-be, similarly left his family and his father’s palace to seek
enlightenment. Lao Tzu may have understood what was in store for him as well as
he left his Chinese homeland, writing his Tao Te Ching at the request of
a ferryman taking him to his disappearance. Muhammed had to flee for his life
once he started telling his story, escaping the Mecca of his youth to Medina.
And then, of course, there is the most dramatic example of all: Jesus is actually
crucified for daring to defy the religious expectations of his time. So, should
you develop any divine inspirations or your own that deviate from those around
you whom you have come to know and love, do not expect to be greeted by adoring
smiles and gratitude.
I should also caution you
that there are many who believe that such speculations are, at best, a waste of
time and, at worst, a dangerous distraction that diverts energies from
confronting the real problems of suffering facing humanity. The Buddha himself
proposed his “Allegory of the Poisoned Arrow.” This is a tale of a man shot by
a poisoned arrow. Before he will allow treatment, he insists on answering
questions such as “Who shot the arrow?” “Why did this person shoot me?” “What
is the composition of the arrow?” “What kind of poison was used?” “Where did it
come from?” Given the time involved in trying to answer these questions, the
victim eventually dies from his untreated wound. For the Buddha, then, it is
far better and more productive to address the issue of human suffering than to
engage in endless, fruitless metaphysical speculation.
However, the Buddha also
taught “Be ye lamps unto yourselves." (Carus, trans. 1894,
(93:13)) In other words, he said that only those beliefs that make
sense to the individual should be followed—and that included his own teachings.
Those of us who are “distracted” (“plagued” might be more accurate) by such
metaphysical speculations know that ignoring them is not an option. Not
everyone is a diabetic so not everyone needs insulin. However, those of us who
are metaphysical diabetics do ourselves no favors by pretending otherwise. We
may never reach absolute certainty, but we are reasonably confident that we can
make enough progress to make a difference in living our day-to- day lives. It
is in that spirit that I have written this book. Hopefully, it will provide
some illumination that will help you find your own way in these dark times.
For more posts about Arthur and his book, click HERE.
For more book excerpts, click HERE.
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